Frequently Asked Questions

About the World Vision Social Innovation Challenge

1. What is the World Vision Social Innovation Challenge?

The World Vision Social Innovation Challenge is an annual Competition for entrepreneurs that aims to bring business ideas to community members abroad who are looking to turn their challenges into opportunities.

Innovators are given the opportunity to develop their business ideas by providing ideation support, incubation through technical advisory services, seed capital, and the expertise of World Vision Canada to market their solutions.

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2. How do we come up with Challenges?

Local Challenge. Global Reach.

We start with one overseas community per challenge. These are real people in real locations with real stories.

Using Human Centered Design Thinking, we work with the community to elicit information which allows us to curate challenge statements that best highlight the challenges faced by the community.

From there, participating World Vision countries are each assigned a Challenge.

Finally, the Challenge is launched in each country and the Competition process begins.

What is Human Centered Design Thinking?

According to IDEO.org, “Human-centered design is a creative approach to problem solving and the backbone of our work at IDEO.org. It’s a process that starts with the people you’re designing for and ends with new solutions that are tailor made to suit their needs. Human-centered design is all about building a deep empathy with the people you’re designing for; generating tons of ideas; building a bunch of prototypes; sharing what you’ve made with the people you’re designing for; and eventually putting your innovative new solution out in the world.”

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3. The Competition Process.

This is a two-round Competition that will allow teams of 2 to 5 people to demonstrate their ideas that work towards solving difficult development challenges affecting the world over the next 5 to 10 years. Please refer to the country-specific page for more details.

Ideate
Teams come up with ideas to address the Challenges posted by World Vision will post the Challenges online at Challenge.worldvision.ca. The website will contain additional resources such as a Challenge-specific technical brief, online instructional videos, and other resources that will provide additional context and information

Submit
Teams will have the ability to submit an entrepreneurial solution to the Challenge online via the Application Portal on Challenge.worldvision.ca

After the Preliminary Round Close Date, World Vision will review and shortlist all Challenge submissions. The number of shortlisted candidates and timelines will vary by country, for more information, please refer to the Challenges Page.

Develop
Applications are shortlisted. These shortlisted business models are then presented to World Vision’s community partner in the field. World Vision works with the community to collect their feedback, which is then consolidated and send back to the shortlisted applicants. From there, World Vision works with shortlisted candidates to iterate on their ideas and business models to prepare teams for the Final Round pitch competition.

PitchThe Final Round will be a one-day, face-to-face pitch competition (Canada & U.S.). The date, time, and location of the event will vary by World Vision country host. Immediately after the Final Round Pitch, one Finalist will be selected as the Challenge winner.

IncubateWinner continues on to 12-month incubation period supported by World Vision to provide market connection and business development support in the field.

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4. Who owns the ideas submitted to the World Vision Social Innovation Challenge – and who can act on those ideas to bring them to life?

All concepts contributed to the World Vision Social Innovation Challenge belong to the Entrant (as defined by the applicable country-specific Rules and Regulations) who created and submitted them.

All work, data, material, documents, software, idea, know-how, expression, etc., in whole or in part, created by the winning Entrant pursuant to the Award and/or Business Plan is the Winner’s sole property. However, the winning Entrant grants and shall forward to World Vision at Winner’s expense, a worldwide, sub-licensable, perpetual, irrevocable, non-exclusive, non-commercial, free of charge and royalty-free license authorizing World Vision to reproduce, disseminate and translate the Work. (Please also see country-specific Rules and Regulations)

Country Specific Questions

Eligibility and Submissions

The competition is open to everyone. To submit an Entry for the Competition and be eligible to win a Prize, team members must, at the date of Entry, be:

a legal resident of any Canadian province or territory.

sixteen (16) years of age or older. Any Team member who is a minor in the jurisdiction which he or she resides, the parent(s) or guardian(s) of the minor must (and WVC assumes that they): a) agree to these Rules and execute and return any related form provided by WVC, on behalf of the minor, within the time frame that WVC sets out; and b) consent to participating in the Award as described herein.

Teams must:

after the Preliminary Round Close Date, not add, remove, or replace any Team members;

appoint a Team leader who will be the point-of-contact with WVC; and

if a registered business, charity, non-profit organization, or social enterprise:

not have received prior investment of more than $10,000;

not have been in operation for more than 3 years; and

bear the same name as that of such entity and shall not change its name during the course of the Competition.

The Competition is not open to employees of WVC, its affiliated organizations, advertising or promotional agencies or media partners, or members of the household of such employees.

See additional details about this in the Competition Rules and Regulations.

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2. How are ideas submitted?

All submissions will be in English or French and must be submitted online at Challenge.worldvision.ca. No paper entries will be accepted.

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3. When is the deadline for idea submission?

Submission Deadline: We invite interested parties to submit their online applications for the Round 1 Competition starting November 1, 2018. The last day for submission is 8:00 p.m. EST on February 22, 2019.

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Process and prizing

1. How are ideas judged?

After the Preliminary Round Close Date, at 8:00 p.m. EST on February 22, 2019, World Vision Canada (WVC) and a team of industry experts will assess the Entries and select up to 5 Finalists per Challenge. The Judges will be experienced entrepreneurs, investors and academics appointed by WVC.

The core assessment of the Entries will focus on the innovativeness, feasibility and viability of the proposed solution.

All Entries will be evaluated by the Chair and co-Chairs of the Competition by using the common “Executive Summary Judging Criteria.”

The Chair and co-Chairs will hold a joint session where up to a maximum of 5 Entries per Challenge will be identified as Finalists.

At the Final Round Pitch, Finalists will be provided an opportunity to present their Business Pitch, which should explain the practicability of the plan execution and fund-ability potential.

Each Finalist will conduct a 5-minute, uninterrupted Business Pitch presentation in English followed by a question and answer session by the judge and, potentially, event guests.

The Judges will make their evaluations and give their scores by using a common “Business Plan Judging Criteria.” It is also possible for some of the judging decision to be allocated to the audience (in person and/or online). This popular vote will not account for more than 40% of the vote. The decision to hold a popular vote will vary from year-to-year and will be left at the discretion of the World Vision.

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2. What is the Prize?

Up to 5 Finalists will receive admission to an accelerator program that will help them develop and incubate their Entries into Business Plans throughout March, April, May and June 2019. The winning teams and WVC will agree upon a suitable commencement date for the sessions.

Only the top team selected as the winner per Challenge will receive an award. The total award value for the winning team will be $25,000 (CAD) and access to further technical support and advisory services to incubate and market test their ideas for 12 months.

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3. Will my travel expenses be paid for by World Vision during the incubation?

No. The travel costs will be covered by you. Remote options will be available.

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4. Will my idea be implemented by World Vision Canada (WVC)?

WVC reserves the right to implement or not implement any ideas submitted to the competition including the winning submission.

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5. Is the Judging Panel’s decision final?

The decisions of the Judging Panel are final and binding. WVC and/or the Judging Panel reserves the right to disqualify any Entry that in its judgment violates the Eligibility or these Rules of the Competition.

WVC reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to disqualify any Winner who (i) may have a barrier to entry into the country of potential testing/prototyping, (ii) has a criminal record or pending criminal charges that may interfere with their ability to travel freely across international borders for the Award, or (iii) does not otherwise meet WVC’s requirements with respect to participation in a WVC program of this nature.

If a Winner is disqualified, he or she forfeits their right to take part in the Award and WVC will be fully absolved of any and all liability in that regard. WVC reserves the right to select an alternate winner who is able to meet the requirements as set out in these Rules.

Before being confirmed as a Finalist or Winner, each such Finalist or Winner will be required to sign and return, within the time stipulated by WVC, a full release and indemnity form stating that the Finalist or Winner has read and understood the Rules, grants all consents required, authorizes WVC to broadcast, publish and disseminate Team members’ name, city of residence, photograph, likeness, and voice, in connection with the Competition and their participation in either of the Prizes at no additional compensation to the Finalist or Winner, accepts the Prizes as offered, and releases WVC and related parties from any and all liability of any kind arising out of the Winner’s participation in the Competition and the Prizes, including any related travel. Proof of identification must be provided upon request.

Eligibility and submissions

The U.S. Challenge is only open to World Vision U.S. Social Innovation Challenge affiliate partners. To submit an Entry for the Competition and be eligible to win an Award:

A School must have an existing partnering relationship in place with WVUS and have been invited by WVUS to participate in the Competition.

The School must have organized its Team or Teams such that each Team member is, at the date of Entry:

a legal resident of the U.S.A.

fourteen (14) years of age or older. Any Team member who is a minor in the jurisdiction which he or she resides, the parent(s) or guardian(s) of the minor must (and WVUS & WVC’s assumes that they): a) agree to these Rules and execute and return any related form provided by WVUS & WVC’s, on behalf of the minor, within the time frame that WVUS & WVC’s sets out; and b) consent to participating in the School’s Award as described herein.

The School must organize its Teams as follows:

after the Preliminary Round Close Date, not add, remove, or replace any Team members;

appoint a Team leader who will be the point-of-contact with WVUS & WVC’s

The Competition is not open to employees of WVUS, WVC, WVI personnel in Monrovia, California, World Vision affiliated organizations, advertising or promotional agencies or media partners, or members of the household of such employees.

See additional details about this in the Competition Rules and Regulations.

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2. How are ideas submitted?

All submissions will be in English and must be submitted online at Challenge.worldvision.ca. No paper entries will be accepted.

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3. When is the deadline for idea submission?

Submission Deadline: We invite interested parties to submit their online applications for the Round 1 Competition starting November 1, 2018. The last day for submission is 8:00 p.m. EST on February 22, 2019.

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Process and prizing

1. How are ideas judged?

After the Preliminary Round Close Date, WVUS & WVC and a team of industry experts will assess the Entries and select up to 5 Finalists. The Judges shall be experienced entrepreneurs, investors and academics appointed by WVUS & WVC in its sole discretion.

The core assessment of the Entries will focus on the innovativeness, feasibility and viability of the proposed solution.

All Entries will be evaluated by the Chair and co-Chairs of the Competition by using the common “Executive Summary Judging Criteria”.

The Chair and co-Chairs will hold a joint session where up to a maximum of 5 Entries will be identified as Finalists.

WVUS will attempt to contact each of the Finalists by telephone within two weeks after the Preliminary Round Close Date. In the event that a Finalist cannot be contacted within two (2) weeks after the selections have been made, that Finalist will be disqualified and an alternate Finalist will be selected.

At the Final Round Pitch, Finalists will be provided an opportunity to present their Business Pitch, which should explain the practicability of the plan execution and fund-ability potential.

Each Finalist will conduct a 5-minute, uninterrupted Business Pitch presentation in English followed by a question and answer session by the judge and, potentially, event guests.

The Judges will make their evaluations and give their scores by using a common “Business Plan Judging Criteria.” It is also possible for some of the judging decision to be allocated to the audience (in person and/or online). This popular vote will not account for more than 40% of the vote. The decision to hold a popular vote will vary from year-to-year and will be left at the discretion of the World Vision.

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2. What is the Award?

Up to 5 Finalists will receive admission to an accelerator program that will help them develop and incubate their Entries into Business Plans throughout March, April, May and June 2019. The winning teams and World Vision U.S, in collaboration with World Vision Canada, will agree upon a suitable commencement date for the sessions.

Only the School for the top team selected as the winner per Challenge will receive an award. The total award value for the winning team will be $25,000 (USD) and access to further technical support and advisory services to incubate and market test their ideas for 12 months (“Award”).

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3. Will our travel expenses be paid for by World Vision during the incubation?

No. The travel costs will be covered by you. Remote options will be available.

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4. Will our idea be implemented by World Vision Canada (WVUS) or World Vision Canada (WVC)?

WVC and WVUS reserves the right to implement or not implement any ideas submitted to the competition including the winning submission.

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5. Is the Judging Panel’s decision final?

The decisions of the Judging Panel are final and binding. WVUS & WVC and/or the Judging Panel reserves the right to disqualify any Entry that in its judgment violates the Eligibility or these Rules of the Competition.

WVUS & WVC reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to disqualify any Winner who (i) may have a barrier to entry into the country of potential testing/prototyping, (ii) has a criminal record or pending criminal charges that may interfere with their ability to travel freely across international borders for the Award, or (iii) does not otherwise meet WVUS & WVC’s requirements with respect to participation in a WVUS & WVC program of this nature.

If a Winner is disqualified, he or she forfeits their right to take part in the Award and WVUS & WVC will be fully absolved of any and all liability in that regard. WVUS & WVC reserves the right to select an alternate winner who is able to meet the requirements as set out in these Rules.

Before being confirmed as a Finalist or Winner, each such Finalist or Winner will be required to sign and return, within the time stipulated by WVUS & WVC, a full release and indemnity form stating that the Finalist or Winner has read and understood the Rules, grants all consents required, authorizes WVUS & WVC to broadcast, publish and disseminate Team members’ name, city of residence, photograph, likeness, and voice, in connection with the Competition and their participation in either of the Prizes at no additional compensation to the Finalist or Winner, accepts the Prizes as offered, and releases WVUS & WVC and related parties from any and all liability of any kind arising out of the Winner’s participation in the Competition and the Prizes, including any related travel. Proof of identification must be provided upon request.

Eligibility and submissions

1. Who is eligible to participate?

To submit an Entry for the Competition and be eligible to win an Award:

Each Team member must, at the date of Entry, be:

a legal resident of the Philippines.

sixteen (16) years of age or older. Any Team member who is a minor in the jurisdiction which he or she resides, the parent(s) or guardian(s) of the minor must (and World Vision Philippines assumes that they): a) agree to these Rules and execute and return any related form provided by World Vision Philippines, on behalf of the minor, within the time frame that World Vision Philippines sets out; and b) consent to participating in the Award as described herein.

Teams must:

after the Preliminary Round Close Date, not add, remove, or replace any Team members;

appoint a Team leader who will be the point-of-contact with and World Vision Philippines; and

if a registered business, charity, non-profit organization, or social enterprise:

not have received prior investment of more than $10,000;

not have been in operation for more than 3 years; and

bear the same name as that of such entity and shall not change its name during the course of the Competition.

The Competition is not open to employees of World Vision Philippines, its affiliated organizations, advertising or promotional agencies or media partners, or members of the household of such employees.

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2. How are ideas submitted?

Individuals may only join one Team. Only one Entry per Team. Multiple Entries will be disqualified. Fraudulent Entries will be declared invalid. All Entries must be submitted online; no paper Entries will be accepted.

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3. When is the deadline for idea submission?

Submission Deadline: The Preliminary Round starts tentatively on December 2018 and closes on February 2019 (“Preliminary RoundClose Date“). After the Preliminary Round Close Date, 5 Teams will be identified as finalists (“Finalists“).

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Process and prizing

1. How are ideas judged?

After the Preliminary Round Close Date, WVC and a team of industry experts (each a “Judge“, collectively “Judges” or “Judging Panel“) will assess the Entries and select up to 5 Finalists. The Judges shall be experienced entrepreneurs, investors and academics appointed by WVDF in its sole discretion.

The core assessment of the Entries will focus on the innovativeness, feasibility and viability of the proposed solution.

All Entries will be evaluated by the Chair and co-Chairs of the Competition by using the common “Executive Summary Judging Criteria”.

The Chair and co-Chairs will hold a joint session where up to a maximum of 5 Entries will be identified as Finalists.

WVDF will attempt to contact each of the Finalists by telephone within two weeks after the Preliminary Round Close Date. In the event that a Finalist cannot be contacted within two (2) weeks after the selections have been made, that Finalist will be disqualified and an alternate Finalist will be selected.

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2. What is the Prize?

5 Finalists (per challenge) will undergo the Social Innovation Boot Camp and Community Experience to help them refine their ideas before the Final Pitch Round. The winning teams and WVDF will agree upon a suitable commencement date for the sessions.

The top team selected as the winner per challenge will receive PhP 100,000.00. The second and third placers will receive PhP 50,000.00 and PhP 25,000.00 respectively. Aside from giving out cash prizes, World Vision will also raise resources for the implementation of the winning solutions for each challenge and provide technical support and advisory services.

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3. Will my travel expenses be paid for by World Vision during the incubation?

No. The travel costs will be covered by you. Remote options will be available.

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4. Will my idea be implemented by World Vision Development Foundation (WVDF)?

WVDF and/or the Judging Panel reserves the right to implement or not implement any ideas submitted to the competition including the winning submission.

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5. Are the decisions of the Judges final?

All decisions of World Vision Philippines with respect to any aspect of this Competition, including without limitation the eligibility of entries, are final and binding on all Team.

All Teams are responsible for ensuring that any material they provide to World Vision Philippines or post on the Online Challenge Platform Site, including but not limited to text, photographs, video and sound, does not violate the copyright, trademark, trade secret or any other personal or proprietary rights of any third party or is used with the permission of the owner(s) of such rights.

By submitting an Entry, each Team represents and warrants that it has all right, title and/or interest in the materials submitted and the information it contains is accurate and complete, and that by submitting the Entry the Team is not and will not be violating any contract or third party rights including any patent, copyright, trade secret, proprietary or confidential information, trade-mark, publicity or privacy right.

By entering this Competition, each member of each Team agrees to release, indemnify, discharge and hold harmless World Vision Philippines, its affiliated organizations, and their respective officers, directors, employees, agents and representatives, from any claim or liability arising from or related to the Competition, and/or participation in the Award.

World Vision Philippines does not assume any responsibility for incorrect or inaccurate capture of entry information, technical malfunctions, human or technical error, seeding or printing errors, lost, delayed or garbled data or transmissions, omission, interruption, deletion, defect or failures of any telephone or computer line or network, computer equipment, software or any combination thereof.

If for any reason, in the opinion of World Vision Philippines, in its sole discretion, the Competition is not capable of running as originally planned, or if the administration, security, fairness, integrity or the proper conduct of the Competition is corrupted or adversely affected, including by reason of infection by computer virus, bugs, tampering, unauthorized intervention, fraud, technical failures or any other causes beyond its control, World Vision Philippines reserves the right to cancel, terminate, modify, amend, extend or suspend the Competition.

World Vision Philippines reserves the right to modify the Rules without materially affecting the terms and conditions hereof. World Vision Philippines reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to disqualify any individual it finds to be tampering with the operation of the Competition or to be acting in violation of the Rules or otherwise in a disruptive manner.

Any attempt to deliberately damage the Competition website or to undermine the legitimate operation of this Competition is a violation of criminal and civil laws and should such an attempt be made, World Vision Philippines reserves the right to seek remedies and damages to the fullest extent of the law.

The Competition is subject to all applicable federal, provincial and municipal laws and regulations.

In the event of any discrepancy or inconsistency between the Rules and disclosures or other statements contained in any Competition related materials, including but not limited to the Competition entry form, the Site or advertising in any media, the Rules shall govern.